COMMENTARY
Aging or Ageism:
Do Words Make a Difference?
By Arthur Webb
A friend of mine said to me the other day that he planned to retire at 59, and was emphatic about not becoming an “older” person. Similarly, at Village Care of New York’s senior living apartments where the average age is over 80, we don’t dare refer to the residents as “older.”
That’s our dilemma, it seems: What words can we use to identify people over 50 that won’t denigrate or pigeonhole these folks?
Researchers and those who study aging refer to the period between retirement and death as The Third Age. The Third Age can loosely be defined as the phase of one’s life that begins after the routine of a career has ended. (First Age is childhood and Second Age is adulthood.) Today’s Third Agers may differ from yesterday’s retirees in that most would not consider themselves to be unproductive, or even career-less. To the contrary, people in the Third Age remain active and relatively healthy from their 50s and 60s, well into their 80s and 90s.
Over time, we have used a variety of words to describe Third Agers: Seniors, aged, elderly, mature, geezers, and even “gerries,” a term that is short for geriatrics and is sometimes used by people who staff nursing homes. We talk about reaching an advanced age, or living into the golden years. All of these words mean different things to different people; it depends on your perspective…and on which side of a certain age you might be.
I think that we should celebrate aging, rather than treat it like a dreaded disease. One of the great triumphs of modern medicine is that it has allowed people to live longer, more active, and often healthier Third Age lives.
Getting back to my friend who is retiring at 59: Should this person now be categorized as a senior? Will he suddenly become “inactive”? Of course not. Many people are simply moving on to a new career, or finally pursuing a hobby for pure enjoyment.
Is discrimination or ageism at work when 65 year-olds are expected to get out of the work force to make room for younger men and women? Is 65 the beginning of the end or the start of something new? A successful, active life in the Third Age can be a reality even for those who face some form of illness.
The word, senior, is so commonplace now that we generally say it without considering what it means. Implicitly, “senior” is used to describe the demarcation between being younger and being older, with the age break generally falling at 65. Senior is both an adjective and noun. As a noun it is seniors who receive Social Security and Medicare; as an adjective it is senior housing. The word senior is supposed to conjure up images of who these people are and what they’re like. Some of the imagined attributes are positive (investors in retirement communities that fuel the economic revitalization of whole communities); while most are negative (a burden on society by no longer contributing in the form of income-generating work). Ironically, when the word senior is used in the context of business (senior management) it connotes prestige and authority. Yet when senior is used in reference to aging, particularly in the United States, it does not carry the same honor.
Frailty, which conjures images of smallness or vulnerability, actually refers to a specific medical condition characterized by muscle weakness, lack of stamina, and weight loss. If not dealt with, it can lead to disability. The good news is that frailty can be prevented or delayed. Our health does fail, sometimes as the simple result of getting older, and other times because of chronic illness. Medicare expenditures reflect this reality, with the greatest expense per individual being seen in the final decade of life. Moreover, it is the last year of one’s life that is the most costly to Medicare.
In some literature and media I am seeing the words consumer or customers creeping into discussions about aging. The fact that recent GAP ads designed to target attractive 60-plus women are referring to these women as customers strikes me as a good sign. It promotes the idea that seniors are customers who can and will make choices. Customers have power in the marketplace. Our Third Age population is very capable of making choices and shaping their own lives. Soon we will have no choice but to recognize and accept this.
Wherever you turn, you see references to Baby Boomers. Nowadays you see it most often in news about Social Security “reform”, which is being promoted by President Bush. It is as if the Boomers, simply by virtue of their large numbers, are causing a financial problem. Or is it that these unproductive geezers are just too much of a burden on the folks who still work for a living? Even the word Boomer is becoming negative.
On the other hand, it seems possible that the power, wealth and size of the Boomer population may bring about a serious change in how we perceive and define aging. Perhaps this group will drive reform to fit its needs, with words that are more appropriate.
As for my friend who is retiring early, statistically, he can expect 30 more years in which to pursue his Third Age dreams.
Mr. Webb is the president and CEO of the not-for-profit organization, Village Care of New York, Inc. He is also the former chairman of the Continuing Care Leadership Coalition, whose members provide services to people of all ages throughout the New York Metropolitan area.
